Zero Percent Abuse

For years, hateful bigots have tried to associate gays and lesbians with pedophilia, claiming that gay and lesbian couples cannot possibly be allowed to be parents because it wouldn’t be safe for the children. It looks like these folks are going to have to find a new boogeyman, based on the results of a new report.

Researchers surveyed 78 teenagers — 39 boys and 39 girls — involved in the U.S. National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study (NLLFS), a 24-year (so far) study of “the social, psychological, and emotional development of the children as well as the dynamics of planned lesbian families.” This latest research revealed something quite extraordinary: of the children surveyed, exactly zero children were victims of physical or sexual abuse by either a parent or other caregiver.

Yep, you read that right — not one child of lesbian parents had suffered from physical or sexual abuse. And how does that compare to the general population? 26% of American adolescents report physical abuse and 8.3 percent suffer sexual abuse at the hands of either a parent or caregiver.

It seems to me that, if we really cared about kids, we ought to be we ought to be encouraging more lesbian couples to have kids rather than trying to prevent them from doing so. “Because victimization of children and adolescents is pervasive and can cause lasting physical, mental, and emotional harm,” the study concludes, “a more in-depth exploration of the ways that lesbian mothers protect their offspring from abuse is warranted. To the extent that these findings are replicated by other researchers, these data have implications for healthcare professionals, policymakers, social service agencies, child protection workers, and domestic violence advocates who seek family models in which violence does not occur.”

It also has implications for those who want to make up mean and nasty accusations about LGBT parents.